TURKMENISTAN MEDIA COVERAGE JULY 2006

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000883

SIPDIS

STATE FOR INR/R/MR, IIP/T, IIP/G/NEA-SA, SA
SCA/CEN, SCA/PAB, SCA/INS, SCA/RA, SCA/PPD, DRL
CENTCOM PUBLIC AFFAIRS-MAJ.BALDWIN/SGT. BAKER
USCINCPAC FOR POLAD R. HUSO
SECDEF FOR PA

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KMDR KPAO OIIP PREL PGOV AF TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN MEDIA COVERAGE JULY 2006


SUMMARY
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1. (U) Turkmenistan state media provided relatively positive
coverage of and adequate support for mission events in July.
Turkmenistan state television was active and positive in its
coverage of ambassador Tracey Ann Jacobson's statement on U.S.
Independence Day, her farewell meeting with President Niyazov and
performances by the HaviKoro cultural group (HaviKoro's visit to be
reported septel). Meanwhile, Turkmenistan's state print media
provided abbreviated coverage of the ambassador's meeting with the
president and failed to reprint post-provided notices advertising
two of HaviKoro's three public performances. Turkmenistan's two
state television outlets provided divergent coverage of the
high-profile HaviKoro program, with one outlet emphasizing host
government involvement and the other focusing on the program itself.


State Media Provides Full Coverage of Ambassador's July 4 Statement

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2. (U) In response to a request by local television to tape the
ambassador's annual U.S. Independence Day address, the ambassador
delivered a one-page statement in English on July 2. On July 4,
local dailies "Neytralniy Turkmenistan" (Russian, circ. 32,241) and
"Turkmenistan" (Turkmen, circ. 28,161) printed a long article beside
the ambassador's photo and statement on the occasion of U.S.
Independence Day. The ambassador noted that she was finishing her
service in Turkmenistan and emphasized the main U.S. policy goals in
Turkmenistan:

-- support for democratic reforms and human rights - including
progress in the health sector,

-- economic development and

-- security cooperation.

Coverage included the ambassador's detailed outline of mission
achievements since the beginning of her tenure in 2003, including
statistics on training conducted, exchange program participation and
mention of post-supported initiatives such as the construction of
two border crossing stations on Turkmenistan's borders. Coverage
included the following statement: "I hope to be able to return to
Turkmenistan someday to witness the country's progress. I hope to
return to a Turkmenistan with a world class educational system that
meets international standards. I hope to return to a democratic
Turkmenistan where every citizen has the right to express his
opinion, and where a vibrant civil society is a partner with the
government in charting the course to development." (Note: The host
government called post - presumably prior to submitting the
statement for the president's approval - with a number of questions
and requests about the statement, leading post to believe that state
media would not reprint the full statement.) Despite host
government hesitations, state TV's "Watan" News program broadcast
the ambassador's statement in full on July 4 and the weekly
"Mugallymlar Gazeti" (Turkmen, circ. 76,291) reprinted the statement
on its front page on July 5.

Patchy Coverage of 2006 U.S. Culture Week
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3. (U) On July 4, "Neytralniy Turkmenistan" and "Turkmenistan" both
carried an article on mission guests HaviKoro that included a
summary of their July 3 public performance and an interview with one
of the group members. The article included the ambassador's opening
remarks where she emphasized that such events reinforce friendly
bilateral relations and help encourage cultural and intellectual
curiosity. The article stated that the American performers wowed
the viewers with their modern music and distinct rhythms. On July
5, "Mugallymlar Gazeti" reprinted the same article on its front
page. "Watan" television news and "Neytralniy Turkmenistan"
provided accurate and timely information on the upcoming two
HaviKoro performances during the week of July 3-7 by broadcasting
and reprinting the advertisements supplied by post. However,
"Turkmenistan" neglected to place these advertisements. (Note: Post
provided Russian-language advertisements to "Neytralniy
Turkmenistan" and Turkmen versions to "Turkmenistan.")


4. (U) "Watan" aired shots of HaviKoro's performances in Ashgabat
and Turkmenbashy (Note: The broadcast used the opportunity to speak
on behalf of the group to praise Ashgabat's Magtymguly National
Musical Drama Theatre and Turkmenbashy's Rukhyet Palace). The
State-run TV-4 Channel coverage of the Ashgabat concert - a joint
performance with local break dance group Dance Power, showcased the
ambassador's opening remarks and an interview in which she

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emphasized that the HaviKoro program was part of a larger effort to
build bilateral friendship and enrich Turkmenistanis' cultural
knowledge. Interviewees at the show expressed their great
satisfaction with the show and noted the culture exchange
facilitated successful relations between people. Each member of
HaviKoro also gave an interview in which he talked about the group's
origins and stressed the importance of U.S. Embassies' and American
Voices' support to organizing such tours worldwide. (Note: HaviKoro
is a part of performing arts consortium American Voices.) The group
members emphasized their goal to bring a positive message to youth
through their performances and to promote the exchange of cultural
heritage throughout the world. The TV-4 coverage concluded with
shots of the performance. (Note: TV-4, a satellite channel,
broadcasts its footage in seven languages successively.)

Ambassador's Farewell Meeting with President Niyazov
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5. (U) On July 4, "Watan" provided misleadingly positive but
otherwise thorough coverage of the ambassador's farewell call on the
president. Coverage began with Niyazov's congratulations on the
anniversary of the United States' independence and the ambassador's
thanks for support she received during her tenure, after which the
"Watan" newscaster described their discussion as positive and
focusing on the satisfactory bilateral partnership in the fields of
education, healthcare, and security. The narrative mentioned
Turkmenistan's success in implementing democratic reforms and
dwelled on the upcoming election of local councils. The newscaster
also said that the ambassador stressed the importance of democratic
change and the significance of elections based on genuine democracy,
noting that such a process was key to creating the conditions for
further democratic reform. The ambassador's full lobby statement
followed, where she noted that the president had promised a
democratic and transparent elections process. (Note: The
ambassador delivered her floor statement in Russian). "We also
talked about education and the need for continuous development of
the educational system. We, the USA, are ready to help in this
important job because as you know the education is a key to
prosperity of every nation."


6. (U) "Neytralniy Turkmenistan" and "Turkmenistan", and weeklies
"Watan" (Turkmen, circ. 25419),"Turkmen Gundogary" (Turkmen, circ.
42728) and "Ashgabat" (Turkmen, circ. 15091) reprinted shortened
coverage of the "Watan" broadcast, omitting any mention of democracy
and education that could be construed as critical of the president's
policies.

Comment
--------------


7. (U) State print and broadcast media surprised post by providing
full coverage of the ambassador's statement for U.S. Independence
Day, after post received multiple inquiries from Turkmenistan's
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and state media about the content of the
statement. The ministry requested further detail about statistics
in the statement regarding contributions of security equipment
mission had donated to the host country. Post declined to modify a
sentence in the statement that the MFA and state media claimed was
derogatory - "I hope to be able to return to Turkmenistan someday to
witness the country's progress." However, post did comply with a
request from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that post omit a phrase
from the statement indicating where the two mission-supported border
posts are being constructed - Iran and Afghanistan.


8. (U) As expected, coverage of the ambassador's farewell meeting
with the president Niyazov received incomplete coverage in print
media though television coverage was full if misleading.
End Comment.


8. (SBU) Dushanbe Minimize considered